We're Friends!
by Door Is Ajar
Summary: Mana finds a certain someone sleeping. It should be her job to report him for a scolding, but instead leaves him be and finds herself lost in memories of their past.
1. Prologue: The Pharaoh is Where?

_Prologue: The Pharaoh is Where?_

It wasn't normal for her to just walk around like there wasn't a care in the word. Oh… Wait, let me rephrase that: It was, in fact, normal for her to do such a thing. However, she usually always attempted to locate the Pharaoh for whatever reason she may have.

So, what wasn't normal was why she was skipping down to the old plumb tree that she, Mahado, and the Pharaoh used to play around. No one was ever there, as far as she knew. None of them had time for such a small thing anymore. As she neared the tree that still had fruit unreachable to her grasp, she noticed someone underneath it.

In closer inspection, she identified it was the Pharaoh. Sneaking even closer, she realized he was asleep with a small gasp of surprise leaving her mouth. 'Passed out' seemed closer to the correct word to use, as she looked him down.

He was wearing his normal royal garbs with the jewelry hooked on throughout his body. His back lay almost completely straight against the trunk of the tree in a manner that didn't seem too relaxed, if not tense, while his head leaned forwards the slightest bit. His mouth was open ajar, also, to breathe as he slept.

She craved so harshly to call Mahado or someone- anyone that she was friends with, really- to see the Pharaoh and humiliate him as a joke. Of course, it would only be a joke, as he would be scolded for leaving practically everyone's sight to sleep the day away. They all feared too greatly that he could be murdered within seconds of leaving someone's side.

Mahado wouldn't be too harsh on him, though, right? He would play it as a joke, just like she would… right? Then again… He was becoming a little stricter as time went on, what with all three of them becoming so much more important to their country and such.

Either way, it really didn't matter… right? She was fed up, trying to figure what to do with this sleeping Pharaoh. In the end, she decided to wait for him to wake up himself. He would suffer enough embarrassment from just her alone, anyhow.

So she plopped down on the ground in front of him, legs to her side, and stared at him in anticipation for anything that he would do. I mean, staring at a sleeping guy isn't the most exciting thing to do. So anything that he did happen to do would seem to be an 'excitement.'

"I remember so much when we were little…" she started, now looking upward at the trees with a small smile that showed she was somewhat lost in her own thoughts. So much for only watching and waiting for the Pharaoh to do something.

"It was so much fun having to do just about nothing when we were kids." Her sentence was almost a duplicate of the other one, simply throwing her thoughts to the wind. "With you being the Prince, you either had your shoulders full of work or you had all the time in the world." Here her voice slowly dimmed as if she was sad for him. But it picked back up as she finished her speaking. "I couldn't imagine doing something like that! But… you always made time for me and Mahado."

She stopped talking altogether and looked back down at him. The three of them were still friends to this day, even though they all had different positions and they had work that seemed to never end. She seemed terrified of the thought of losing one of her precious friends, one who had been with her for so long, at that.

"I wish the three of us had more time to just hang out together. But I can't complain. You're the one with all the work after all!" she chuckled slightly at the end at a joke she seemed to make.

"And… Even now that you do have free time, I can't complain. All that you're doing is relaxing. Playing some random game with me wouldn't exactly be relaxing."

When she began speaking that time, her voice had softened. Like she understood his intentions of sneaking away to this tree and didn't feel angry towards him at all.

A small smile formed on her lips as she watched the Pharaoh sleep as if there wasn't a care in the world for the two of them. She began thinking of their past, what they did as kids. It was so hard to believe her friend from childhood was all grown up and now the pharaoh! And it happened right in front of her eyes, too! She became consumed in these memories and she found herself craving for a stupid game to play with the Pharaoh now.

_To Be Continued…_

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><p>Author's Note:<p>

I changed the last paragraph because I absolutely hated it on 12/23/11. I hope you like it better, but I'm not 100% sure myself. XD_  
><em>


	2. Ch 1: You're Sick, So Don't Worry!

_Chapter 1: You're Sick, So Don't Worry!_

The first scene she remembered was when the two were kids, maybe ten to twelve or something of such, and she was heading to the Prince's room. She sneaked behind plants and guards like she was robbing the place or planning to capture the boy. However, she thought she was the second to 'capture the prince' when she heard a cough from inside his room and a small moan.

She stuck her head around the rim where a door today would be placed and looked inside to find the Prince facing her on his stomach, his head hanging off the bottom of the bed. She almost jumped out of her skin and actually let out a small squeal at the fright of being caught when she noticed his eyes were closed and he had an almost completely peaceful look on his face.

Anyhow, she was prepared to run when she watched his eyes lazily open, from her noise probably, not even to their full amount. "Mana? Wha… What are you doing here?" he mumbled out. He almost seemed to be intoxicated by wine or an overdose of some medicine, but that was pretty much unlikely. However, even his soft, garbled words scared her from believing he wouldn't be waking up soon and made her jump from his act.

She quickly composed herself and moved her whole body to be placed in the doorway. "Y-Yeah, it's me, Prince." Here she let out a small chuckle as if to lighten the mood.

"Why… Why'd you come here? I thought we were… we were going to meet by the plum tree outside…" his words were heavy like effort was required to speak, and a light bulb- although not invented yet- seemed to go off in her head. The Prince was sick. How simple was that to figure out?

"Yeah, but you never came, so I came here instead. And now I have a question for you!" Her excuse of him not appearing was quite obviously a lie. If he was two seconds late she would have come to search for him, which was exactly what she did.

He let out a small 'Hm?' to show he heard her as his eyes made their way shut.

"This is just a guess, but… Are you sick?" She almost sounded like a joke, like she was planning to rub it all over his face. She then walked closer, standing directly in front of him, and looked down to await his answer.

"… I don't know, Mana…" By his late and lazy response, she guessed he was barely comprehending what she was asking, along with the fact that he was almost asleep.

A frown that had crept up onto her face after her attempt to lighten the mood by laughing became more worried than sad at the fact he couldn't play with her today. She knelt down, wanting to get a better view of him.

From what he was wearing- being his royal clothes, headpiece, and two gold bands on one arm a piece- told her he planned to visit her and Mahado- wherever he was- but didn't make it farther than his room and collapsed onto his already clean bed to sleep his illness away.

"I think you are sick, Prince…" she almost whispered out in a tone she wasn't used to, filled with her worry and sympathy along with her loathing towards herself for something she wasn't even sure of.

"'Kay…" he replied, too tired to really do anything else or anything more.

For one thing, she knew he absolutely despised being ill. Well, she had never actually seen him sick before now, but anything that would make him appear weak or unworthy by his father he completely hated. She knew being the next in line for Pharaoh made him that way, but she was understanding of that. So she respected when he couldn't play with her or such an act that she herself would usually never tolerate.

Her first idea was to get someone else to help- What did little Mana know about medicine, sick people, or anything of the like?- but thought better of it, for it would still cause his father to worry about him by the truth of his son's health spreading until it reached him.

"How about you just relax today? We can play tomorrow if you want." She kept the Pharaoh out of her mouth; the Prince's first thoughts about him would be how he expected his son to be better, to not be taken down by a puny cold.

"Alright… Can you just… not tell anyone?" It seemed simple enough, right?

"Sure! You can count on me! We're friends for a reason, aren't we?" she laughed again, this time genuinely, before placing her hand on his head. "Can you do something for me, though?" There were still some remnants of her laughter, but she waited patiently for him to acknowledge her.

"Hm? …What is it?" he asked as if he really questioned what she wanted from him.

"Just… let me take care of you today. We're friends, and you take care of everyone else _but _yourself. So let me do it for you today. Is that okay?" A smile remained on her face this time from laughing.

The Prince opened his eyes the slightest bit to see for himself if she was being truthful, not just pulling one over on him. But she was still smiling with her hand on his head, proving enough how she meant what she said.

He let out a small chuckle as a smirk came across his face. Closing his eyes, he spoke in reply, "Sure. But that includes freezing anyone who tries to come in here." He knew she had barely started her training with magic, but he knew she would understand.

She laughed again at his little stupid joke and her eyes closed in her small amount of happiness while he was sick. "I will."

"Now… I think I'm gonna puke…" he stated as a comical-like gloom passed over the room from his comment.

"Ew! Prince, how do you get outside from here!"

_To Be Continued..._

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><p>Author's Note:<p>

I don't add author's notes, but whatever. XD Sorry for the wait; I usually don't take this long to update, but Christmas has gotten in the way. I want to thank everyone for the reviews, favorites, and watches who did one of them! The next chapter should be out a little after Christmas, though. Also, because my Internet is down, I have to use my sister's computer to upload, so I may have time to write more but not upload them immediately. :)


	3. Ch 2 Pt 1: Against My Father

_Chapter 2: Against My Father, Who Are You Kidding?_

When the Prince turned thirteen, he was to start training with the Pharaoh, his father, for when he would be ruler himself. Neither he nor Mana knew what the training would be like or how long each session would be. Because of that, Mana was stuck in the Prince's room, pacing the floor or laying across the entire bed, to wait for him to return from his first time training.

She eventually fell asleep, rolling over to the left side of the bed on the left side of her body. Twenty minutes afterwards the Prince walked through the door with a tired pace. Noticing Mana, he let out a sigh and stepped over to stand in front of his bed. Before waiting for anything to happen he let his body fall forward and onto the bed to rest.

Mana could have sworn she felt something while she was sleeping, but deduced the Prince plopping onto the bed as her own imagination. So when she gave up on sleeping after quite literally five minutes from the awakening from him, she moved her body to look behind herself to see the Prince with his face into the cushion of the bed and body looking completely relaxed.

She seemed to well with a sense of accomplishment as a smile lit up her entire face- not for herself but for the Prince- for him being able to sleep so calm and relaxed; for whenever she did happen to see him sleep, the weight of the real world carried on into his dreams.

But then she felt the smile fall down as she studied his arms and down to his legs. They were littered with bruises and cuts; it appeared someone attempted to heal him but didn't finish. Even his clothes looked darker from dirt and dust and just the feeling of wrong.

"Where… Where did he get these from?" she asked herself. She was about to lean in closer in depressed awe when the Prince stirred the slightest bit, rolling over to his back but remaining laying in the same spot.

He looked up at her with an expression she related to tired. Not just one from having just awoken, but from something else. "Hey…" he spoke to get her attention.

"Hey, Prince…" The pair stayed silent for possibly a minute before Mana decided the silence was too much. "How'd training go?"

She could have sworn she noticed his eyes widen for a split second at the mention of his training. He sighed as he brought his left hand to his head and closed his eyes, a wave of defeat seeming to consume him.

"Absolutely horrible. According to my father, however, I did wonderful. But I don't see what he means when I got injured how I am…" He reopened his eyes to stare at her, and she felt her heart break at the defeat leaking from his look alone.

It took her a moment to think of exactly what she wanted to say before speaking. "I'm sure you did just fine like your father said. If you did fight your father like you were supposed to, of course you're not going to win! He's the Pharaoh after all! But if you fought hard enough, he… he'll just be able to tell that you did fine considering all the circumstances."

As the information sunk into him, he appeared to consider what she had said, truly wondering if what she said was a correct evaluation. Yes, he fought his father. But he was only being taught simply hand-to-hand combat moves at the time before he would be able to summon monsters of his own.

"Thanks, Mana… I suppose you're right, but-"

"Don't 'but' me! If I'm right, I'm right! End of story!" she laughed at the end. She really could not stay serious for long, no matter what was happening or what she was talking about. "Now I've been bored all day. You own me something."

"You want to play a game, right? One of those really childish ones like tag or high-and-seek," the Prince asked as a smile silently made its way onto his mouth and tugged at the corners to make the smirk larger.

"Yeah… You're not too tired, are you?" she asked. She was prepared for a yes and was slightly disappointed, but figured he probably was pooped.

It was the Prince's turn to laugh slightly as he was about to answer. "Yeah… I'm tired. But I owe it to you, anyway. Just don't yell at me when I pass out or something."

The two started laughing together like usually. The pair sorted these things out the same all the time, knowing that their process would work. Being serious was not for them; laughing and acting younger than what they were was who they were.

So as their outbursts quieted, Mana hopped off the bed and offered the Prince her hand to pull him up, leaving to go outside where they would- in fact- play some stupid childish game.

_To Be Continued…_

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><p>Author's Note:<p>

Yeah, I said I hated adding these, but whatever. XD Anyway, I was thinking of making the next chapter a little continuation of this chapter or adding more to this chapter. I was leaning towards adding more because the word count is so small! But then I would need to add a break possibly, depending on how my thoughts go, and I really don't like adding breaks. Tell me what you think which one I should do because you're thoughts heavily influence what I do! XD Also, I didn't think I could right much because of Christmas, but I've actually had a lot of time. XD I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and thanks again for everyone who is supporting my and enjoying this! Merry Christmas! :)_  
><em>


	4. Ch 2 Pt 2: Against My Father

_Chapter 2 Pt. 2: Against My Father, Who Are You Kidding?_

After playing a game that seemed to start off as hide-and-seek and then turn into tag without them even knowing for much longer than an hour, the pair headed back to the Prince's room. Although somewhat expected, Mana was still surprised when his legs gave way underneath him and he collapsed beside her while they were not even a yard away from the plum tree they began playing at.

"P-Prince!" she couldn't even scream at the fright of him being dead. It was pretty logical to her that he was nowhere near death, but of course wild thoughts jump into your mind at the smallest of things.

Falling to the floor, she rolled him over to have his eyes staring at her, his panting from playing making her realize she had stopped after he collapsed.

"A-Are you okay?" she asked, even though she expected him to say yes as a way to make her feel better.

"Y-Yeah, I'm… I'm fine… Just… can you help me up?" he asked while trying to catch his breath between words. Nodding her head seemed like all she could do without freaking out to answer him.

Placing her hand on his back, she lifted his upper body up and then hung her arm around his neck with him duplicating such to her. She successfully got both standing with little help from the Prince. She didn't realize that she would actually need his help as his legs didn't want to hold him up, causing him to lean on her and nearly topple both over.

"S-Sorry…" he mumbled out. Readying herself to yell at him in that somewhat humorous way, her mouth remained open the slightest bit before she finally closed it completely. His eyes were barely open, and she watched them fall once completely shut before rushing back open.

"You know, if you were this weak, I wouldn't have come out here to play with you." A smile played its way onto her lips while looking down at him. He turned his head to look at her, and she watched as a small smirk formed its way onto his mouth, still open to breath in the air.

"Can we just rest by… by the tree? It's too far…" he complained after looking back down at the ground.

"Wah, Wah, Wah. You're so lazy! You know that, right?" She burst out laughing at the end. Joking with him was too easy and too much fun, especially since he didn't care. Heck, he laughed _with_ her, and this time was no exception!

Catching her breath and using her other hand to wipe away tears that formed from laughing too hard, she spoke again. "I can carry you on my back. And it's not that far." Her statement seemed slightly confusing, making him look back up at her.

"That's what boys do. You should know that. It's not the other way around." His expression showing that he was baffled a little almost made her giggle.

"Yeah, but you look like you could be underweight, if you ask me. Plus, you're not even a year older than me." Her statements, he realized, were true. He did look like he could gain a few pounds, and the reason they were probably such good friends was because of how close their ages were.

"Alright. But the only reason I'm letting you do this is because…" She started to worry a little as he closed his eyes but was reassured as he took a big gulp of air in and then let it out. "I'm too tired to figure out a reason, but there are some."

"What you just said is a reason!" she giggled before lowering the two to the ground, removing her arm from around the Prince. She then placed her back towards him with her arms to her sides. He grabbed her shoulders to pull him up the few inches, then fit his legs on both her sides with her own hands grabbing under his legs to keep him from falling off.

Standing up, she jumped the slightest bit to heave him higher into a more comfortable grip. "You're light, just like I thought." she spoke, turning her head to look back at him.

To her- What was it? There were a few different emotions, but one wasn't enough to use. - surprise, disbelief, and joy were a few things she felt when she saw his head resting on her left shoulder, his eyes closed in sleep.

"Are you really asleep already?" It didn't seem possible to her; but thinking of what he did today, she was almost surprised it didn't happen sooner.

He didn't give a response, although he usually woke up when bothered the littlest bit. All that his lack of action told her was that he was completely out of it, that nothing could wake him.

Sighing with a grin on her face, she walked back into the palace, ready to sneak past the guards so no one could question what was wrong with the Prince.

_To Be Continued..._

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><p>Author's Note: I usually never take this long to update, but I've been busy with Christmas. Any-who, here's the continuation of the last chapter. I don't think I'm going to write a third part, but I do plan on making another chapter. And after that I may have another, depending if I can get my thoughts right. XD Also, I want to thank everyone who's reviewed watched, favorite, or whatever! The support really is encouraging, especially to someone like me who is probably one of the youngest people on this site and writing! I want to send messages to people who've reviewed or something, but I'll need time, and I won't have that until I get my Internet running! XD So if you don't mind me sending you a thank you note… well… I'm going to. Thanks for reading, and I hope you continue to enjoy! :)<p> 


	5. Ch 3: What If I Could Trick Him?

_Chapter 3: What If I Could Trick Him?_

Scaring one another was something every kid does at least once. And for Mana and Atem, it was a constant game for the pair when they were ten and eleven. It usually was something small, like hiding behind a door frame and jumping out as they walked past. But some tricks went too far, and they learned what stunts not to pull. Such as pouring water over the Prince while he slept... ten minutes after falling asleep from a longer than usual practice with his father. Or making Mana believe the Prince was going to kick her butt- quite literally- when he saw her for the terrible act she never committed.

One night, though, Mana barged into the Prince's room with blood leaving a small trail at the corner of her mouth, holding her left side with her right hand and screaming at him! "Prince, Prince! Help, I've been attacked! Th-There's an intruder in the palace!" The darkness throughout his room wouldn't allow him to catch the smirk that was ever so slightly hovering on her face.

Shooting up like a bullet, he attempted to wait for his eyes to adjust to the dimness, which was two seconds at the most, but decided it was simply too long and looked frantically around the room and missing over Mana herself a few times in the process.

"W-What's wrong? A-Are you hurt?" Finally noticing her, he jumped to his feet and took her arm, gently guiding her the foot to the bed to sit down.

"T-There was a guy and... and he just attacked me! But he ran away... I-I think out of the palace afterwards..." She had some trouble controlling herself, making sure not to giggle the slightest bit. But it was so hard to! His face was so serious and... concerned? It took her a second, but after finding it, she couldn't take the picture out of her mind.

His eyes were wide with fright, his pupils shrunk in the fact of what possibly happened to her. And how that she thought about it, his hand on her arm in comfort was shaking. She didn't even have to guess he was frightened out of his mind.

The prank was going too good to be true.

"W-Where did he hurt you, Mana? We should get you help i-if he hurt you." She could tell he was loosing his cool slowly. Ever so slowly, but she knew he was going to break soon. And right before then she would end the prank of hers.

"He st-stabbed me in the side. I th-think eh figured I wasn't who he thought I was because h-he ran away right after that." Almost there. Just gotta make sure the whole plot is made.

"Oh God... Um... Uh..." He released his grip on her arm, bringing both to his face, and she watched them shake as they neared his face, not quite touching it.

Even closer... He didn't know what to do! He really, truly thought she was hurt and bad at that!

"We should... Um... O-Oh God... Uh..." His eyes wouldn't meet hers, trying to look past her hand placed on her 'wound.'

Was this one of those pranks that she would get in trouble for? She could only hope not, but she couldn't decide weather his scared, terrified look was humorous or something she herself should be scared of.

But that was when it clicked in her brain: He didn't deal with death. He didn't worry about her becoming injured or hurt or anything like that. His mind was too innocent to this stuff, although she could say the same for herself. She could only assume she would be freaking out like this- if not worse- if she saw him in this condition.

"Mana! Mana! Oh God, Oh God... Mana!" She must have zoned out for a second- probably no longer, at that- for him to be screaming at her like such.

She locked eyes with him and noticed the tears flowing freely down his face. And his hands had returned to her arms in the short time period she seemed to be lost in thought, for she was shaking slightly from his unsteady grip.

"H-Hey, Prince. Relax, alright? I-It's just a joke..." It was a normal tone now that she spoke in, not the fake hurt stunt she was attempting to pull that seemed to work on the Prince.

"A... A j-joke... Oh my... G-God..." He sniffled before quickly gripping her into a death hug, and she could feel how he buried his head into her shoulder, his tears making her skin somewhat wet.

"I-I thought you were seriously hurt, Mana! I-I didn't know what to do, and I thought you were really attacked, and... And..." He cried into her shoulder. But Mana had no clue what to do. Her arms remained at her side, not sure if she should return his hug or not. And her mouth was open slightly as if she had released a small gasp at his action.

"A-Aren't you mad at me?" The thought didn't register in her mind before the prank, but she also didn't believe he would be mad from the start.

Pulling away from her and placing his hands on her shoulders, he asked, "M-Mad?" He then removed his hands completely, putting them on his head. "I don't think you realize how relieved I am! To find out this was a joke would be all I could wish for when you first came in here!" The tears continued to roll from being so scared, but a smile was now on his face from the new fact granted.

Next prank never to pull: Make the Prince think she was attacked. Unless she was ready for him to have a breakdown. Or did he even have one yet...

She wasn't willing to try.

_To Be Continued..._

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><p>Author's Note: Oh my gosh, I really can't believe I wrote this! This was just something I came up with all of a sudden and decided to write it without a clear vision of how the end would turn out. Any-who, I hope you enjoyed the newest chapter, and I hope to have the next one up soon... Don't blame me, blame school! :D<p> 


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